Method of fabricating a liquid crystal display device using gate and common links to link gate and common lines to gate and common pads

ABSTRACT

The present invention provides a liquid crystal display panel that is adaptive for preventing a liquid crystal contamination as well as improving an adhesive strength of a sealant and an organic insulating film, and a fabricating method thereof. A liquid crystal display device according to an embodiment of the present invention includes: a first and a second substrate having a liquid crystal region, a sealant region, and an outer region; a wiring disposed on the first substrate, the wiring crossing the sealant region; a gate insulating film disposed on the wiring; an organic insulating film disposed on a portion of the wiring; and a sealant disposed on the sealant region of the first and second substrates, wherein the sealant is in contact with the gate insulating film.

This application is a Divisional Application of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 11/167,829, filed Jun. 28, 2005, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,643,122,now allowed, which claims priority to Korean Application No.10-2004-0049954, filed Jun. 30, 2004, all of which are herebyincorporated by reference for all purposes as if fully sets forthherein.

This application claims the benefit of the Korean Patent Application No.P2004-49954 filed on Jun. 30, 2004, which is hereby incorporated byreference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a liquid crystal display panel havingan organic insulating film. More particularly, the present inventionrelates to a liquid crystal display panel that is adaptive forpreventing liquid crystal contamination as well as improving an adhesivestrength of a sealant and an organic insulating film, and a fabricatingmethod thereof.

2. Description of the Related Art

A liquid crystal display device displays a picture by controlling thetransmission of light through a liquid crystal by use of an electricfield. A liquid crystal display device includes a liquid crystal displaypanel in which liquid crystal cells are arranged in a matrix shape, anda drive circuit to drive the liquid crystal display panel.

The liquid crystal display panel, as illustrated in FIG. 1, has astructure in which a thin film transistor substrate 2 and an upper plate4 a disposed opposite each other and are bonded by a seal material 6.The bonded thin film transistor array substrate 2 maintains a fixed cellgap from the upper plate 4 by a spacer, and the cell gap is filled withthe liquid crystal which is for controlling the transmission of light inaccordance with an applied electric field.

The thin film transistor substrate 2 includes a gate line and a dataline formed on a first substrate; a thin film transistor connected at acrossing of the gate line and the data line; a pixel electrode formed ateach pixel area which is defined by the crossing of the gate line andthe data line and connected to the thin film transistor; a passivationfilm to protect the structure; and an alignment film to align liquidcrystal. The gate line receives a scan signal from a gate driver througha gate pad 10. The data line receives a video signal from a data driverthrough a data pad 8. The thin film transistor responds to the scansignal of the gate line to supply a video signal of the data line to thepixel electrode.

The upper plate 4 includes a color filter which is formed on a secondsubstrate; a black matrix for dividing between the color filters and toreflect external incident light; a common electrode for supplying areference voltage to the liquid crystal cells; and an alignment film toalign liquid crystal.

The thin film transistor substrate 2 and the upper plate 4 are bondedtogether by a sealant 6 which is spread along the outer area of apicture display area where the liquid crystal cells are arranged. Theupper plate 4 is bonded with the thin film transistor substrate 2 suchthat the gate pad 8 and the data pad 10, which are provided at abordering area of the thin film transistor substrate 2, are exposed.

An inorganic insulating film or an organic insulating film is used forthe passivation film which is included in the thin film transistorsubstrate 2 in the liquid crystal display panel. The inorganicinsulating film is formed of an inorganic insulating material, such asSiNx, SiOx. The inorganic insulating film has a high dielectric constantand is formed by a deposition method. Accordingly, it has a disadvantagein that it is difficult to increase the height of the inorganicinsulating film. Because of this, the pixel electrode and the data line,which have the inorganic insulating film disposed between them have tokeep a fixed horizontal gap, e.g., a horizontal gap of 3˜5 μm, in orderto minimize a coupling effect caused by a parasitic capacitance. As aresult, the size of the pixel electrode which controls the apertureratio of the liquid crystal cell is diminished, thereby lowering theaperture ratio.

An organic insulating film is applied in order to solve the low apertureratio problem caused by the inorganic insulating film. As such, theorganic insulating material has relatively low dielectric constant.Further, the organic insulating film has an advantage that it can beformed to be relatively thick by application methods such as spincoating. The presence of the organic insulating film, which has arelatively low dielectric constant and which can be formed relativelythick, reduces the capacitance of the parasitic capacitor between thedata line and the pixel electrode. As a result, the pixel electrode canbe formed to overlap the data line. As a result, the size of the pixelelectrode is increased along with the aperture ratio.

An organic insulating film might also be applied to a structure in whichthe color filter is formed on the thin film transistor substrate, and atransflective structure in which each pixel area is divided into atransmission area and a reflection area.

According to the related art, the organic insulating film included inthe thin film transistor substrate is in contact with the sealant, whichis for bonding the thin film transistor substrate with the upper plate.The organic insulating film and the sealant, which is generally an epoxyresin have a weak adhesive characteristic such that its adhesivestrength deteriorates over time. Deterioration of the organic insulatingfilm provides a path through which the moisture of the outsidepenetrates due to its structure, resulting in defects such as a liquidcrystal contamination. Further, at the interface where the organicinsulating film and the sealant are in contact with the liquid crystal,liquid crystal contamination may be caused by the organic material withpolarity which is generated by the mutual reaction of the polymer andmonomer remaining behind at the organic insulating film and the sealant.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a liquid crystaldisplay panel including organic insulation film and fabricating methodthereof that substantially obviates one or more of the aforementionedproblems due to limitations and disadvantages of the related art. Ingeneral, the present invention achieves this by providing a structureand fabrication process that prevents liquid crystal contamination andimproves the adhesive strength of a sealant by preventing a reactionbetween the liquid crystal, the sealant, and the organic insulatinglayer in the liquid crystal display device.

An advantage of the present invention is that it reduces the risk ofcontamination of a liquid crystal material

Another advantage of the present invention is that it improves liquidcrystal display reliability by improving the adhesive strength of thesealant used to bond the two substrates forming the liquid crystaldisplay device.

Additional advantages of the invention will be set forth in thedescription which follows, and in part will be apparent from thedescription, or may be learned by practice of the invention. Theadvantages of the invention will be realized and attained by thestructure particularly pointed out in the written description and claimshereof as well as the appended drawings.

The aforementioned and other advantages of the present invention areachieved with a liquid crystal display device, which comprises a firstand a second substrate having a liquid crystal region, a sealant region,and an outer region; a wiring disposed on the first substrate, thewiring crossing the sealant region; a gate insulating film disposed onthe wiring; an organic insulating film disposed on a portion of thewiring; and a sealant disposed on the sealant region of the first andsecond substrates, wherein the sealant is in contact with the gateinsulating film.

In another aspect of the present invention, the aforementioned and otheradvantages are achieved by a method of fabricating a liquid crystaldisplay device, wherein the method comprises providing first and secondsubstrates having a liquid crystal region, a sealant region, and anouter region; forming a wiring on the first substrate, wherein thewiring crosses the sealant region; forming an inorganic insulating filmon the wiring; forming an organic insulating film on the inorganicinsulating film, wherein a portion of the inorganic insulating film isexposed in the sealant region; and forming a liquid crystal layerbetween the first and second substrates using a sealant, wherein thesealant contacts the inorganic insulating film in the sealant region.

It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description andthe following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory and areintended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other objects of the invention will be apparent from thefollowing detailed description of the embodiments of the presentinvention with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a plane view briefly illustrating a related art liquid crystaldisplay panel structure;

FIG. 2 is a plane view illustrating a part of a thin film transistorsubstrate including an organic insulating film in a liquid crystaldisplay panel according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a sectional diagram illustrating a thin film transistorsubstrate shown in FIG. 2, taken along the lines I-I′, II-II′, III-III′and IV-IV′;

FIGS. 4A through 4E are a plane view and a sectional diagram to explaina first mask process in a fabricating method of a thin film transistorsubstrate according to the embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 5A through 5E are a plane view and a sectional diagram to explaina second mask process in the fabricating method of the thin filmtransistor substrate according to the embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIGS. 6A through 6E are a plane view and a sectional diagram to explaina third mask process in the fabricating method of the thin filmtransistor substrate according to the embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIGS. 7A through 7E are a plane view and a sectional diagram to explaina fourth mask process in the fabricating method of the thin filmtransistor substrate according to the embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 8 is a plane view illustrating an enlarged part of a sealing areain the thin film transistor substrate shown in FIG. 2;

FIGS. 9A to 9C are sectional diagrams illustrating three embodimentswhich can be applied as a vertical structure of a wiring part thatcrosses a sealant shown in FIG. 8;

FIGS. 10A to 10D are sectional diagrams illustrating four embodimentswhich can be applied as a vertical structure of an area between wiringsthat cross a sealant shown in FIG. 8;

FIG. 11 is a plane view partially illustrating a sealing area accordingto a first embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 12A through 12G are sectional diagrams illustrating a sealing areaof the thin film transistor substrate shown in FIG. 11, taken along thelines V-V′, VI-VI′, VIIa-VIIa′, VIIb-VIIb′, VIIc-VIIc′, VIId-VIId′,VIIe-VIIe′;

FIGS. 13A through 13H are a plain view and a sectional diagram toexplain a first mask process in a fabricating method of the thin filmtransistor substrate shown in FIGS. 11 and 12;

FIGS. 14A through 14H are a plane view and a sectional diagram toexplain a second mask process in the fabricating method of the thin filmtransistor substrate shown in FIGS. 11 and 12;

FIGS. 15A through 15H are a plane view and a sectional diagram toexplain a third mask process in the fabricating method of the thin filmtransistor substrate shown in FIGS. 11 and 12;

FIGS. 16A through 16H are a plane view and a sectional diagram toexplain a fourth mask process in the fabricating method of the thin filmtransistor substrate shown in FIGS. 11 and 12;

FIG. 17 is a plane view partially illustrating a sealing area accordingto a second embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 18A through 18G is a sectional diagram illustrating a sealing areaof the thin film transistor substrate shown in FIG. 17, taken along thelines V-V′, VI-VI′, VIIa-VIIa′, VIIb-VIIb′, VIIc-VIIc′, VIId-VIId′,VIIe-VIIe′;

FIGS. 19A through 19H are a plain view and a sectional diagram toexplain a first mask process in a fabricating method of the thin filmtransistor substrate shown in FIGS. 17 and 18;

FIGS. 20A through 20H are a plane view and a sectional diagram toexplain a second mask process in the fabricating method of the thin filmtransistor substrate shown in FIGS. 17 and 18;

FIGS. 21A through 21H are a plane view and a sectional diagram toexplain a third mask process in the fabricating method of the thin filmtransistor substrate shown in FIGS. 17 and 18;

FIGS. 22A through 22H are a plane view and a sectional diagram toexplain a fourth mask process in the fabricating method of the thin filmtransistor substrate shown in FIGS. 17 and 18;

FIGS. 23A and 23B are plane views illustrating a liquid crystal displaypanel according to the embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 24 is a sectional diagram illustrating a sticking part of a tapecarrier package illustrated in FIG. 23B, taken along the line IX-IX′.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE ILLUSTRATED EMBODIMENT

Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments of the presentinvention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail withreference to FIGS. 2 to 24.

FIG. 2 is a plane view illustrating a part of an exemplary thin filmtransistor substrate including an organic insulating film in a liquidcrystal display panel according to an embodiment of the presentinvention. FIG. 3A-3D are sectional diagrams illustrating a thin filmtransistor substrate illustrated in FIG. 2, respectively taken along thelines I-I′, II-II′, III-III′ and IV-IV′. The thin film transistorsubstrate shown in FIGS. 3A-3D is illustrated by taking a high apertureratio structure as an example, wherein the high aperture ratio structurehas an organic insulating film used to increase the aperture ratio.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3A-3D, the thin film transistor substrateincludes a gate line 22 and a data line 24 which cross each other with agate insulating film 82 disposed between them to define a pixel area; athin film transistor TFT connected to the gate line 22 and the data line24; and a pixel electrode 38, which is formed at each pixel area andconnected to the thin film transistor TFT. The thin film transistorsubstrate includes a storage capacitor Cst formed by the overlapping ofpixel electrode 38 and a first common line 32 that crosses a pixel area;a gate pad 40 connected to the gate line 22 through a gate link 48; anda data pad 50 connected to the data line 24 through a data link 58.

The gate line 22 supplies a scan signal from a gate driver (not shown),and the data line 24 supplies a video signal from a data driver (notshown). The gate line 22 and the data line 24 cross each other with thegate insulating film 82 disposed between them to define each pixel area.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3A, the thin film transistor TFT responds tothe scan signal of the gate line 22 by applying the video signal voltageon the data line 24 to the pixel electrode 38. For this, the thin filmtransistor TFT includes a gate electrode included in the gate line 22; asource electrode 28 connected to the data line 24; a drain electrode 30that faces the source electrode 28 and is connected to the pixelelectrode 38; an active layer 26A which overlaps the gate line 22 withthe gate insulating film 82 to form a channel between the sourceelectrode 28 and the drain electrode 30; and an ohmic contact layer 26Bformed on the active layer 26A, except for a channel part, in order tobe in ohmic-contact with the source electrode 28 and the drain electrode30.

A semiconductor pattern 26, which includes the active layer 26A and theohmic contact layer 26B, is formed to overlap the data line 24.

The pixel electrode 38 is formed on an organic insulating film 86 ofeach pixel area and is connected to the drain electrode 30 exposedthrough a first contact hole 31 that penetrates the organic insulatingfilm 86 and a buffer insulating film 84. The pixel electrode 38 isformed to partially overlap the gate line 22 and the data line 24thereby increasing the aperture ratio. The pixel electrode 38 generatesa potential difference with the common electrode of the upper plate (notshown) by the video signal voltage supplied through the thin filmtransistor TFT. The liquid crystal, by means of its dielectricanisotropy, rotates according this potential difference to control thetransmission of the light through the liquid crystal device.Accordingly, the brightness becomes different as a function of the videosignal.

The storage capacitor Cst is formed by having the first common line 32crossing the pixel electrode 38 overlap the storage upper electrode 34connected to the pixel electrode 38 through a second contact hole 36with the gate insulating film 82 between them. The storage upperelectrode 34 overlaps the semiconductor pattern 26. The storagecapacitor Cst stably maintains the video signal voltage, which ischarged in the pixel electrode.

The gate line 22 is connected to a gate driver (not shown) through agate pad 40. The gate pad 40 includes a gate pad lower electrode 42connected to the gate line 22 through a gate link 48, and a gate padupper electrode 46 connected to the gate pad lower electrode 42. Thegate pad lower electrode 42 is exposed through a third contact hole 44,which goes through the organic insulating film 86 to the gate insulatingfilm 82.

The data line 24 is connected to a data driver (not shown) through adata pad 50. The data pad 50 includes a data pad lower electrode 52connected to the data line 24 through the data link 58, and a data padupper electrode 56 connected to the data pad lower electrode 52. Thedata pad lower electrode 52 is exposed through a fourth contact hole 54,which goes through the organic insulating film 86 to the gate insulatingfilm 82.

Referring to FIGS. 3B and 3C, the data pad 50 and link 58 are formed inthe same vertical structure as the gate pad 40 and link 48. In otherwords, the data pad and link 50, 58 are formed from a gate metal layerhaving a single layer or double layer structure together with the gatepad 40 and link 48, the gate line 22 and the first common line 32. Forexample, the gate metal layer may be formed of a double layer structurein which first and second gate metal layers 23 and 25 are deposited. Inthis manner, the data pad 50 and link 58 are formed in the same verticalstructure as the gate pad 40 and link 48, the gate insulating film 82and the organic insulating film 86 serve as the passivation film,thereby improving the reliability of the wiring. Further, a sealant 90is formed to cross the gate link 48 and the data link 58 of the samevertical structure so that the seal area can maintain a uniform cellgap.

Referring to FIG. 3D, the thin film transistor substrate of the presentinvention further includes a first contact electrode 60 to connect thedata link 58, which is formed of the gate metal layer 23, 25 under thegate insulating film 82, with the data line 24, which is formed of thesource/drain metal layer on top of the gate insulating film 82. Thefirst contact electrode 60 connects the data line 24 which is exposedthrough a fifth contact hole 62 that penetrates the organic insulatingfilm 86 and a buffer insulating film 84, with the data link 58 which isexposed through a sixth contact hole 64 that penetrates from the organicinsulating film 86 to the gate insulating film 82. The first contactelectrode 60 is located in an area of the liquid crystal display that isto be sealed by sealant 90.

The thin film transistor substrate of the present invention furtherincludes a second common line 76 to commonly connect the first commonline 32 that crosses the pixel electrode 38. The second common line 76is commonly connected to the first common lines, 32 which are formedbetween the gate lines 22, to supply a common voltage. The second commonline 76 is formed of the same source/drain metal layer as the data line,whereas the first common line 32 if formed of the gate metal layer in 23and 25. The second common line 76 is insulated from and crosses the gateline 22, and the semiconductor pattern 26 is disposed underneath. Thesecond common line 76 is connected to the first common line 32 which isformed of the gate metal layer 23 and 25 through a second contactelectrode 70. The second contact electrode 70 connects the second commonline 76 which is exposed through a seventh contact hole 72 thatpenetrates the organic insulating film 86 and the buffer insulating film84; and the first common line 32 is exposed through an eighth contacthole 74 that penetrates from the organic insulating film 86 to the gateinsulating film 82. The contact electrode 70 is located at a liquidcrystal area which is to be sealed by the sealant 90.

The thin film transistor substrate of the present invention furtherincludes a common pad and a link (not shown) to supply the commonvoltage from an external common voltage source to the second common line76. The common pad and link have the same vertical structure as the datapad 50 and link 58, and it is connected to the second common linethrough a contact part (not shown) that has the same vertical structureas a contact part of the data link 58 and the data line 24 including thefirst contact electrode 60.

An exemplary the fabricating method of the thin film transistorsubstrate of the present invention with such a composition is asfollows.

FIGS. 4A through 4E are a plane view and sectional diagrams thatillustrates a first mask process in an exemplary fabricating method of athin film transistor substrate according to the embodiment of thepresent invention.

A gate metal pattern is formed, including the gate line 22, the gatelink 48, a gate pad lower electrode 42, the data link 58, a data padlower electrode 52 and the first common line 32 on the lower substrate80 by a first mask process. The gate metal pattern is formed in a doublestructure where the first and second gate metal layers 23, 25 aredeposited.

The first and second gate metal layers 23, 25 may be deposited on thelower substrate 80 by a deposition method such as sputtering. The firstand second gate metal layers 23, 25 are formed of a metal such as Mo,Ti, Cu, Al(Nd), Cr, and MoW. In a particular embodiment the first gatemetal layer 23 is formed of Al, and the second gate metal layer 25 is ofMo. The deposited first and second metal layers 23, 25 are patterned bya photolithography process using a first mask and an etching process,thereby forming the gate metal pattern including the gate line 22, thegate link 48, the gate pad lower electrode 42, the data link 58, thedata pad lower electrode 52 and the first common line 32. The gate metalpattern includes a common pad lower electrode and a common link (notshown).

FIGS. 5A through 5E are a plane view and sectional diagrams to explainan exemplary second mask process in the fabricating method of the thinfilm transistor substrate according to the embodiment of the presentinvention.

The gate insulating film 82 is formed on the lower substrate 80 wherethe gate metal pattern is formed. Using a second mask process, asource/drain metal pattern is formed, which includes the data line 24,the source electrode 28, the drain electrode 30 and the storage upperelectrode 34. A semiconductor pattern 26 is next formed, which includesthe active layer 26A and the ohmic contact layer 26B, which overlapsalong the rear surface of the source/drain metal pattern.

In a particular embodiment of a second mask process, a gate insulatingfilm 82, an amorphous silicon layer, an amorphous silicon layer dopedwith impurities (n+ or p+) and the source/drain metal layer aresequentially formed on the lower substrate 80 where the gate pattern isformed. For example, the gate insulating film 82, the amorphous siliconlayer, and the amorphous silicon layer doped with impurities (n+ or p+)may be formed by a PECVD method, and the source/drain metal layer isformed by a sputtering method. The gate insulating film 82 may be formedof an inorganic insulating material such as SiOx and SiNx, and thesource/drain metal layer may be formed of a metal such as Mo, Ti, Cu,Al(Nd), Cr and MoW.

A photo-resist pattern may be formed with a stepped surface on thesource/drain metal layer by a photolithography process using adiffractive exposure (halftone) mask. The photo-resist pattern with thestepped surface has a structure such that the part for forming thechannel of the thin film transistor is thinner than the other part. Thesource/drain pattern including the data line 24, the source electrode28, the drain electrode 30 integrated with the source electrode 28, thestorage upper electrode 34, the second common line 76, and thesemiconductor pattern 26 disposed underneath these elements are formedby the etching process using the photo-resist pattern.

Subsequently, the photo-resist pattern for forming the channel 21, whichcorresponds to thinner part of the stepped surface, is removed by anashing process using an oxygen O₂ plasma, and the photo-resist patterncorresponding to the rest of the stepped surface becomes thin. Theexposed source/drain pattern and the ohmic contact layer 26B underneathare exposed by the etching process using the ashed photo-resist patternas a mask, thus the source electrode 28 and the drain electrode 30 areseparated and the active layer 26A corresponding to the channel 21 isexposed. Both side parts of the source/drain pattern are etched oncemore along the ashed photo-resist pattern, thus the source/drain patternand the semiconductor pattern 26 have a fixed stepped difference in astep shape.

The photo-resist pattern remaining behind on the source/drain pattern isremoved by a strip process.

FIGS. 6A through 6D are a plane view and sectional diagrams illustratingan exemplary third mask process in the fabricating method of the thinfilm transistor substrate according to the present invention.

Using the third mask process, the buffer insulating film 84 and theorganic insulating film 86 are formed, including first to eighth contactholes 31, 36, 44, 54, 62, 64, 72 and 74 on the gate insulating film 82.Specifically, the buffer insulating film 84 is formed on the gateinsulating film 82 where the source/drain pattern is formed, using adeposition method such as PECVD, and the organic insulating film 86 isformed thereon by a deposition process such as spin coating. The bufferinsulating film 84 may include an inorganic insulating material such asthat used for the gate insulating film 82, and the organic insulatingfilm 86 may include an organic insulating material such as acryliccompound, Teflon, benzocyclobutene BCB, cytop or perfluorocyclobutanePFCB.

Next the first to eighth contact holes 31, 36, 44, 54, 62, 64, 72 and 74are formed by photolithography using the third mask and the etchingprocess. For example, if a photo-sensitive organic material such asphoto acryl is used for the organic insulating film 86, the organicinsulating film 86 using the third mask may be patterned by an exposureand development process, thereby forming the first to eighth contactholes 31, 36, 44, 54, 62, 64, 72 and 74 only in the organic insulatingfilm 86. Subsequently, the first to eighth contact holes 31, 36, 44, 54,62, 64, 72 and 74 are extended into the semiconductor pattern 26 or thegate insulating film 82 through the buffer insulating film 84, by a dryetching process using the patterned organic insulating film 86 as amask. Specifically, each of the first, second, fifth and seventh contactholes 31, 36, 62 and 72 penetrates the buffer insulating film 84 fromthe organic insulating film 86 to respectively expose the drainelectrode 30, the storage upper electrode 34, the data line 24 and thesecond common line 76. If a metal such as Mo, which is easy for dryetching, is used as the source/drain metal pattern, the first and secondcontact holes 31, 36 penetrate through the source/drain metal layer tothe semiconductor pattern 26 underneath. The third, fourth, sixth andeighth contact holes 44, 54, 64, 74 penetrate from the organicinsulating film 86 to the gate insulating film 82 to respectively exposethe gate pad lower electrode 42, the data pad lower electrode 52, thedata link 58 and the first common line 32.

FIGS. 7A through 7E are a plane view and sectional diagrams illustratingan exemplary fourth mask process in the fabricating method of the thinfilm transistor substrate according to the present invention.

Using the fourth mask process, a transparent conductive pattern isformed, including the pixel electrode 38, the gate pad upper electrode46, the data pad upper electrode 56, the first and second contactelectrodes 60, 70 on the organic insulating film 86.

The transparent conductive layer is formed on the organic insulatingfilm 86 by a deposition method such as sputtering. The transparentconductive material may include ITO, TO, or IZO. Subsequently, thetransparent conductive layer is patterned by the photolithography usingthe fourth mask and an etching process, thereby forming the transparentconductive pattern including the pixel electrode 38, the gate pad upperelectrode 46, the data pad upper electrode 56 and the first and secondcontact electrodes 60, 70. The pixel electrode 38 is connected to thedrain electrode 30 and the storage upper electrode 34 exposedrespectively through each of the first and second contact holes 31 and36. The gate pad upper electrode 46 and the data pad upper electrode 56are respectively connected to the gate pad lower electrode 42 and thedata pad lower electrode 52 which are respectively exposed through thethird and fourth contact holes 44 and 54. The first contact electrode 60connects the data line 24 and the data link 58, which are respectivelyexposed through the fifth and sixth contact holes 62 and 64. The secondcontact electrode 70 connects the second common line 76 and the firstcommon line 32 which are respectively exposed through the seventh andeighth contact holes 72 and 74.

With the thin film transistor substrate formed by the exemplary fourmask processes, an alignment film (not shown) for aligning the liquidcrystal is spread in a picture display part. Subsequently, a sealant 90for bonding with the upper plate is formed to enclose the liquid crystalarea which is filled with the liquid crystal. In order to reinforce theadhesive strength of the sealant 90, the contact area between thesealant 90 and the organic insulating film 86 is diminished, and thewiring should be prevented from being exposed in order to preventcorrosion. By taking these conditions into consideration, the verticalstructures of the seal area which can be applied are as follows.

FIG. 8 is a plane view illustrating an enlarged part of a sealing areain the thin film transistor substrate according to an exemplaryembodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 9A to 9C are sectionaldiagrams illustrating three exemplary embodiments that can be applied asa vertical structure of a wiring upper part along the line V-V′ in theseal area shown in FIG. 8. FIGS. 10A to 10D are sectional diagramsillustrating four embodiments which can be applied as a verticalstructure of an area between wirings along the line VI-VI′. FIGS. 9A to10D further illustrate the upper plate 100, which is bonded with thethin film transistor substrate by the sealant 90.

The sealant 90 illustrates in FIG. 8 is formed to cross the wiring, likethe gate link 48 or the data link 58 of the thin film transistorsubstrate, to make the thin film transistor substrate bonded with theupper plate. The liquid crystal is filled into the cell gap between thebonded thin film transistor substrate and the upper plate, and theliquid crystal area is sealed by the sealant 90.

FIG. 9A illustrates a first wiring upper structure; FIG. 9B illustratesa second wiring upper structure; and FIG. 9C illustrates a third wiringupper structure which can be applied as an upper structure of the wiringsuch as the gate link 48, the data link 58 and the common link in theseal area where the sealant 90 is formed. Referring to FIG. 9A, thefirst wiring upper structure has the sealant 90 in contact with the gateinsulating film 82 without the organic insulating film. Referring toFIG. 9B, the second wiring upper structure has the sealant 90 in contactwith the part of the organic insulating film 86 extended from a cellouter part (non liquid crystal area). Referring to FIG. 9C, the thirdwiring upper structure has the sealant 90 in contact with the part ofthe organic insulating film 86 which is extended from the cell innerpart (the liquid crystal area) and the cell outer part.

In the first wiring upper structure illustrated in FIG. 9A, the organicinsulating film of the thin film transistor substrate is patterned forthe sealant 90 to be in contact only with the gate insulating film 82.The organic insulating film 86 and the buffer insulating film 84underneath it are patterned, and the part where the gate insulating film82 is exposed is extended to the cell inner and outer parts around thesealant 90. Accordingly, the sealant 90 is not in contact with theorganic insulating film, so that the adhesive strength is improved andit is possible to prevent the contamination of the liquid crystal 88caused by the reaction of the sealant 90 and the organic insulatingfilm. Further, wiring such as the gate link 48 and the data link 58 isprotected by the gate insulating film 82.

In the second wiring upper structure illustrated in FIG. 9B, the organicinsulating film 86 is patterned so that the organic insulating film 86,which is extended from the cell outer part, overlaps part of the sealant90, and the other part of the sealant 90 which is adjacent to the cellinner part overlaps the gate insulating film 82. Herein, the organicinsulating film 86 and the buffer insulating film 84 thereunder areremoved so that the part which is exposed to the gate insulating film 82is extended to the cell inner part around the seal area. A dummy pattern92 that acts as an etch stopper is used in order to remove the organicinsulating film 86 so that the gate insulating film 82 is exposed.Accordingly, part of the dummy pattern 92 that overlaps the organicinsulating film 86 remaining behind in the seal area is left behind.Further, if the source/drain metal layer is used as the dummy pattern92, the semiconductor pattern 26 remains underneath according to theprocess, and a dummy protective pattern 94 formed in a transparentconductive layer after the organic insulating film 86 is formed isprovided to protect the dummy pattern 92. Accordingly, the contact areaof the sealant 90 and the organic insulating film 86 decreases, therebyimproving the adhesive strength of the sealant 90. Further, thecontamination of the liquid crystal 88 caused by the reaction of thesealant 90 and the organic insulating film 86 can be prevented becausethe organic insulating film 86 does not exist at an interface where theliquid crystal is in contact with the sealant 90. Additionally, wiringsuch as the gate link 48, data link 58 and the common link is protectedby the gate insulating film 82′ the buffer insulating film 84, and theorganic insulating film 86, which are patterned over the wiring.

In the third wiring upper structure illustrated in FIG. 9C, the organicinsulating film 86 is patterned so that part of the organic insulatingfilm 86, which is extended from the cell outer and inner parts, overlapsthe sealant 90. And, part of a dummy pattern 96 overlapping the organicinsulating film 86 which remains behind at both sides of the seal arearemains together with the semiconductor pattern 26 underneath, and adummy protective pattern 98 is formed to protect the dummy pattern 96 ofboth sides. Accordingly, the contact area of the sealant 90 and theorganic insulating film 86 decreases, which improves the adhesivestrength of the sealant 90. Also, the gate insulating film 82′ and thebuffer insulating film 84, and the organic insulating film 86 protectthe wiring, such as the gate link 48 and the data link 58. Further, theorganic insulating film 86 exists at the interface where the sealant 90is in contact with the liquid crystal 88. However, if a sealant 90 andan organic insulating film 86 that do not generate a reactant are used,the contamination of the liquid crystal 88 caused by the reactant can beprevented.

FIG. 10A illustrates a first wiring gap structure which; FIG. 10B,illustrates a second wiring gap structure; FIG. 10C illustrates a thirdwiring gap structure; FIG. 10D illustrates and a fourth wiring gapstructure can be applied as a wiring gap structure in the seal areawhere the sealant 90 is printed. Referring to FIG. 10A, the first wiringgap structure has the sealant 90 in contact with the substrate 80.Referring to FIG. 10B, the second wiring gap structure has the sealant90 in contact with the gate insulating film 82 without the organicinsulating film. Referring to FIG. 10C, the third wiring gap structurehas the sealant 90 in contact with part of the organic insulating film86 which is extended from the cell outer part. Referring to FIG. 10D,the fourth wiring gap structure has the sealant 90 in contact with partof the organic insulating film 86 which is extended from the cell innerand outer parts.

In the first wiring gap structure illustrated in FIG. 10A, the organicinsulating film is patterned together with the buffer insulating filmand the gate insulating film underneath so that the sealant 90 is incontact only with the substrate 80. The part where the substrate 80 isexposed is extended to the cell inner and outer parts around the sealant90.

In the second wiring gap structure illustrated in FIG. 10B, the organicinsulating film and the buffer insulating film underneath are patternedso that the sealant 90 is in contact only with the gate insulating film82, and the part where the gate insulating film 82 is exposed isextended to the cell inner and outer parts around the sealant 90.

Accordingly, in the first and second wiring gap structure, the sealant90 is not in contact with the organic insulating film, thus its adhesivestrength is improved, and the contamination caused by the reaction ofthe sealant 90 and the organic insulating film can be prevented.

In the third wiring gap structure illustrated in FIG. 10C, the organicinsulating film 86 is patterned so that the organic insulating film 86,which is extended from the cell outer part, overlaps part of the sealant90 and the other part of the sealant 90 that is adjacent to the cellinner part overlaps the gate insulating film 82. Herein, the organicinsulating film and the buffer insulating film 84 underneath are removedso that the part where the gate insulating film 82 is exposed isextended to the cell inner part around the seal area. In the seal area,part of the dummy pattern 92 which overlaps a portion of the remainingorganic insulating film 86 is left is disposed over the semiconductorpattern 26. The dummy protective pattern 94 is formed to protect thedummy pattern 92 of both sides. Accordingly, the contact area of thesealant 90 and the organic insulating film 86 decreases to improve theadhesive strength, and the contamination of the liquid crystal 88 causedby the reaction of the sealant 90 and the organic insulating film 86 canbe prevented because the organic insulating film 86 do not exist at theinterface where the sealant 90 is in contact with the liquid crystal 88.

In the fourth wiring gap structure illustrated in FIG. 10D, the organicinsulating film 86 is patterned so that part of the organic insulatingfilm 86, which extends from the cell outer and inner parts, overlaps thesealant 90. And, part of the dummy pattern 96 which overlaps theremaining organic insulating film 86 is left together with thesemiconductor pattern 26 thereunder at both sides of the seal area, andthe dummy protective pattern 98 is formed to protect the dummy pattern96 of both sides. Accordingly, the contact area of the sealant 90 andthe organic insulating film 86 decreases to improve the adhesivestrength of the sealant 90. in this exemplary embodiment, contaminationof the liquid crystal 88 can be prevented by selecting a material forthe sealant 90 and the organic insulating film, which do not generatethe reactant.

Accordingly, in the thin film transistor substrate according to thepresent invention, there are twelve possible combinations as thevertical structure of the seal area by combing the first to third wiringupper structures with the first to fourth wiring gap structures. Basedon a pressure cooking test and a high humidity operation test on theseal area structures of each of the 12 cases, the first wiring upperstructure illustrated in FIG. 9B and the first wiring gap structureshown in FIG. 10A or the second wiring gap structure shown in FIG. 10Bmay be the most reliable structures. Hereinafter, the two seal areastructures where the first wiring upper structure and the first wiringgap structure or the second wiring gap structure are applied aredescribed in detail.

FIG. 11 is an enlarged plane view partially illustrating a sealing areaof a thin film transistor substrate according to a first embodiment ofthe present invention, and FIGS. 12A-12G are sectional diagramsillustrating a sealing area and a surrounding part thereof shown in FIG.11, respectively taken along the lines V-V′, VI-VI′, VIIa-VIIa′,VIIb-VIIb′, VIIc-VIIc′, VIId-VIId′, VIIe-VIIe′;

The foregoing first wiring structure and wiring gap structure areapplied to the seal area illustrated in FIGS. 11 and 12A-12G. Sectionalview V-V′ in FIG. 12A and sectional view VI-VI′ in FIG. 12B illustrate awiring part vertical structure and a wiring gap vertical structure takenin a wiring direction. Referring to FIGS. 12C-12G, sectional viewVIIa-VIIa′, VIIc-VIIc′, VIId-VIId′ and VIIe-VIIe′ respectivelyillustrate a cell inner part where the organic insulating film 86exists; the cell inner part where the organic insulating film 86 isremoved; the seal area where the organic insulating film 86 exists; andthe vertical structure of the cell inner part, which are cut off alongthe sealant's 90 forming direction.

The sealant 90 in FIGS. 11 and 12A-12G is formed to cross the wiringsuch as the gate link 48, the data link 58, and the common link, whichare formed on the thin film transistor substrate.

On the inner cell part of the thin film transistor substrate, where theliquid crystal is to be formed, there is formed an insulating filmincluding the gate insulating film 82, the buffer insulating film 84 andthe organic insulating film, 86 which are deposited to commonly coverthe wiring as illustrated in the VIIa-VIIa′ section. The edge part ofthe insulating films is separated from the sealant so that theinsulating films of the cell inner part does not overlap the sealant 90.

Referring to FIG. 12G on the outer cell part of the thin film transistorsubstrate, there is formed an insulating pattern including a line typegate insulating pattern 82A, a buffer insulating pattern 84A and anorganic insulating pattern 86A which are deposited to independentlyencompass the wiring as in the VIIe-VIIe′ section. Referring to FIG.12F, the insulating pattern of the cell outer part is extended along thewiring to overlap the part of the sealant 90, thereby protecting thewiring as in the VIId-VIId′ section. The gate insulating pattern 82Aamong these is further extended along the wiring to the edge part of theinner insulating film so as to overlap the other part of the sealant 90,thereby protecting the wiring as in the VIIb-VIIb′ section.

The dummy pattern 92 is used as the etch stopper when patterning theinsulating film in order to further extend only the gate insulatingpattern 82A along the wiring. In the dummy pattern 92, the partoverlapping the end of the inner insulating film and the partoverlapping the end of the organic insulating pattern 86A which overlapsthe sealant 90 remain together with the semiconductor pattern 26underneath. The dummy pattern 92 has a wider line width than the wiringas illustrated in the VIId-VIId′ section.

The dummy protective pattern 94 is further formed to protect the edgepart of the semiconductor pattern 26 and the remaining dummy pattern 92.The dummy protective pattern 94 is formed to have a wider line widththan the organic insulating pattern 86A, thus it has a shape of coveringthe insulating pattern, as illustrated in the VIId-VIId′ section.

Referring to FIG. 11, all insulating film is removed in the area 102between the gate insulating patterns 82A, thus it has a structure suchthat the substrate 80 is exposed, as illustrated in the VIIb-VIIb′,VIIc-VIIc′, VIId-VIId′ and VIIe-VIIe′ sections.

Accordingly, the sealant 90 is in contact with the gate insulatingpattern 82A which is adjacent to the cell inner part and exposed; theorganic insulating pattern 86A, which is adjacent to the cell outer partand exposed; and the dummy protective pattern 94 in the wiring upperpart; and it is in contact with the substrate 80 between the wirings. Asa result, the adhesive strength is improved, and the reliability isimproved in that liquid crystal contamination is prevented, and wiringis protected.

The seal area according to the first embodiment of the present inventionhaving such a structure is formed by an exemplary four mask processes asillustrated in FIGS. 13A to 16H. The four mask processes uses processessubstantially similar to the four mask processes described above withreference to FIGS. 4A to 7E.

Referring to FIGS. 13A and 13B-13H, there is formed a wiring of doublestructure such as the gate link 48, the data link 58, and the commonlink on the substrate 80 by a first mask process.

Referring to FIGS. 14A and 14B-14H, there are formed the gate insulatingfilm 82 which commonly covers the wirings, and the dummy pattern 92,which act as the etch stopper, to overlap each wiring with thesemiconductor pattern 26 underneath. In this case, the dummy pattern 92and the semiconductor pattern 26 are formed to encompass the wiringalong each wiring to the part of the seal area from the cell inner partthat is adjacent to the seal area. If the distance between the wiringsis not sufficient, the dummy pattern 92 and the semiconductor pattern 26are formed to encompass the wirings by numbers.

Referring to FIGS. 15A and 15B-15H, the buffer insulating film 84 andthe organic insulating film 86 are formed on the gate insulating film 82by the third exemplary mask process, and then the insulating films fromthe organic insulating film 86 to the gate insulating film 82 arepatterned. Accordingly, the insulating film separated from the seal areais formed in the cell inner part, and an insulating pattern is formedthat independently protects each wiring from the part of the seal areato the cell outer part. In this case, the dummy pattern 92, which actsas the etch stopper, is exposed to be removed together with thesemiconductor pattern underneath, thus the gate insulating pattern 82Aremains in the shape of the dummy pattern 92 at the part where the dummypattern 92 and the semiconductor pattern 26 are otherwise removed. Thegate insulating pattern 82A encompasses each wiring in accordance withthe shape of the dummy pattern 92 which encompasses the wirings bynumbers. Further, the part of the dummy pattern 92 overlapping the endof the organic insulating pattern 86A and the organic film 86symmetrically remains together with the semiconductor pattern 26.

After the organic insulating film 86 is formed, the organic insulatingfilm 86 is patterned by a photolithography process using the third mask.Accordingly, the organic insulating film 86 is separated from the sealarea so that it is in the cell inner part. And, there is formed anorganic insulating pattern 86A, which covers each wiring from the partof the seal area to the cell outer part. By using the patterned organicinsulating film 86 and the organic insulating pattern 86A as a mask, thegate insulating film 82 and the buffer insulating film 84 underneath arepatterned. Accordingly, the gate insulating film 82 and the bufferinsulating film 84 of the cell inner part are separated from the sealarea similar to the organic insulating film 86. And, the gate insulatingpattern 82A and the buffer insulating pattern 84A are disposedunderneath the organic insulating pattern 86A in the seal area and thecell outer part. The dummy pattern 92 and the semiconductor pattern 26underneath which are exposed between the organic film 86 and the organicinsulating pattern 86A are removed by delaying the etch speed, thus thegate insulating pattern 82A encompassing each wiring or the wirings bynumbers remains in the shape in the part where the dummy pattern 92 andthe semiconductor pattern 26 are otherwise removed. In case that thereis a pin hole within the dummy pattern 92 and the semiconductor pattern26, the pin hole is extended to the gate insulating pattern 82A toexpose the wiring so that it can be subsequently corroded when beingused in high humidity for a long time. Thus it may be desirable to formthe wiring with two or more layers. The part of the dummy pattern 92overlapping the end of the organic insulating pattern 86A and theorganic film 86 symmetrically remains behind together with thesemiconductor pattern 26.

Referring to FIGS. 16A and 16B-16H, the dummy protective pattern 94 isformed to protect the edge of the semiconductor pattern 26 and the dummypattern 92 by the fourth exemplary mask process. The dummy protectivepattern 94 is formed of a transparent conductive layer. The dummyprotective pattern 94 prevents the dummy pattern 92 and thesemiconductor pattern 26 from being etched by the etchant of thetransparent conductive layer in the patterning process for forming thecontact electrode and the pixel electrode of the cell inner part.

FIG. 17 is an enlarged plane view partially illustrating a sealing areaof a thin film transistor substrate according to another embodiment ofthe present invention, and FIGS. 18A-18G are sectional diagramsillustrating a sealing area and a surrounding part thereof shown in FIG.17, respectively taken along the lines V-V′, VI-VI′, VIIa-VIIa′,VIIc-VIIc′, VIId-VIId′, VIIe-VIIe′.

Specifically, the foregoing first wiring structure and wiring gapstructure are applied to the seal area shown in FIGS. 17 and 18A-18G.

The seal area illustrated in FIGS. 17 and 18 has substantially similarcomponents as the seal area shown in FIGS. 11 and 12 except that thesealant 90 is in contact with the gate insulating pattern 82B evenbetween the wirings, thus the explanation for the repeated componentswill be omitted.

The gate insulating pattern, which is exposed between the organicinsulating film 86 of the cell inner part and the organic insulatingpattern 86A overlapping the part of the seal area, includes a first gateinsulating pattern 82A of the upper part and a second gate insulatingpattern 82B between the wirings, and the first and second gateinsulating patterns 82A and 82B are formed to be integrated. The firstgate insulating pattern 82A is further extended to the cell outer partalong the organic insulating pattern 86A which independently encompasseseach wiring. Herein, the length of the second gate insulating pattern82B is formed to be shorter than the exposed part length (wiringdirection) of the first gate insulating pattern 82A. Accordingly, thearea 102 between the organic insulating patterns 86A has a structuresuch that the substrate 80 is exposed.

Accordingly, the sealant 90 is in contact with the first gate insulatingpattern 82B, which is adjacent to the cell inner part and exposed; theorganic insulating pattern 86A which is adjacent to the cell outer partand exposed; and the dummy protective pattern 94 in the wiring upperpart. The sealant 90, it is in contact with the second gate insulatingpattern which is adjacent to the cell inner part and exposed, and thesubstrate 80 which is adjacent to the cell outer part and exposed,between the wirings. As a result, the adhesive strength is improved, andreliability is improved due to prevention of liquid crystalcontamination and the protection of wiring.

The seal area according to the second embodiment of the presentinvention having such a structure is formed by four mask processes asshown in FIGS. 19A to 22H. The four mask processes are substantiallysimilar to the four mask processes described above with reference toFIGS. 4A to 7B, thus it will be described in brief.

Referring to FIGS. 19A and 19H, there is formed a wiring of doublestructure such as the gate link 48, the data link 58 and the common linkon the substrate 80 by a first mask process.

Referring to FIGS. 20A and 20B 20H, the gate insulating film 82 isformed, which commonly covers the wirings. Also formed are the first andsecond dummy patterns 92, 93, which act as the etch stopper, to overlapeach wiring together with the semiconductor pattern 26 underneath.Herein, the first dummy pattern 92 is formed along the wiring to thepart of the seal area from the cell inner part which is adjacent to theseal area, and the second dummy pattern 93 integrated with the firstdummy pattern 92 between the wirings. The length of the second dummypattern 93 may be shorter than the length of the first dummy pattern 92(wiring direction).

Referring to FIGS. 21A and 21B-21H, the buffer insulating film 84 andthe organic insulating film 86 are formed on the gate insulating film 82by the third mask process, and then these three insulating films arepatterned. Accordingly, the insulating films separated from the sealarea are formed in the cell inner part. Further, an insulating patternis formed that independently protects each wiring from the seal area tothe cell outer part. In this case, the first and second dummy patterns92, 93, which act as the etch stopper are exposed to be removed togetherwith the semiconductor pattern underneath. Accordingly, the first gateinsulating pattern 82A, which encompasses each wiring, and the secondgate insulating pattern 82B between wirings remain at the part where thefirst and second dummy patterns 92, 93 and the semiconductor pattern 26are removed. Further, the part of the first dummy pattern 92 overlappingthe end of the organic insulating pattern 86A and the organic film 86symmetrically remains together with the semiconductor pattern 26.

Referring to FIGS. 22A and 22B-22H, the dummy protective pattern 94 isformed from a transparent conductive layer to protect the edge of thesemiconductor pattern 26 and the first dummy pattern 92 by the fourthmask process. The dummy protective pattern 94 prevents the first dummypattern 92 and the semiconductor pattern 26 from being exposed toetchant used in the patterning process of the transparent conductivelayer for forming the contact electrode and the pixel electrode on thecell inner part.

FIGS. 23A and 23B illustrate a liquid crystal display panel including anorganic film according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG.24 is a sectional diagram illustrating a sticking part of a tape carrierpackage (hereinafter, referred to as “TCP”) illustrated in FIG. 23,taken along the line IX-IX′.

The liquid crystal display panel shown in FIG. 23 is formed by having athin film transistor substrate 110 and an upper plate 120 bondedtogether though a first sealant 130 that encompasses a liquid crystalarea.

A TCP 150 is adhered to the surrounding part of the thin film transistorsubstrate 110 that does not overlap the upper plate 120, wherein a driveIC 140 for driving the gate line 22 and the data line 24 may be mountedon the TCP 150. The TCP 150, as illustrated in FIG. 24, is adhered to apad part including the gate pad 40 or the data pad (not shown) throughan anisotropic conductive film ACF 154 as in FIG. 24. The sticking partof the TCP 150 and the pad part is sealed by a second sealant 160 thatsubstantially encompasses the surroundings of the TCP 150.

Referring to FIGS. 23B and 24, the gate line 22 formed at the liquidcrystal area is connected to the gate pad 40 through the gate link 48,and the gate pad 40 is connected to the output pad 152 of the TCP 150,on which the drive IC 140 is mounted, through the ACF 154. The gate pad40 includes a gate pad lower electrode having a double structure, whichis extended from the gate link 48, and a gate pad upper electrode 46connected to the gate pad lower electrode 42. The gate pad upperelectrode 46 is connected to the gate pad lower electrode 42 which isexposed through a contact hole that penetrates the organic insulatingfilm 86, the buffer insulating film 84 and the gate insulating film 82.The gate pad upper electrode 46, as illustrated in FIG. 24, is locatedbetween the edge part of the TCP 150 and the edge part of the secondsealant 160 to be protected by the second sealant 160. On the otherhand, in the gate pad double structure lower electrode 42 in which thefirst and second gate metal layers 23, 25 are deposited, a metal like Momay be used, which is easily dry-etched, as a second gate metal layer.The lower electrode 82 might be etched when forming the contact hole tohave a structure so that the first gate metal layer 23 is exposed.

The data line (not shown) may be connected to a data link 58 through thecontact electrode (not shown) may as described above, and the data link58 and a data pad (not shown) also have the same structure as the gatelink 48 and the gate pad 40 to be connected to an output pad 152 of theTCP 150 through ACF 154.

As described above, in the liquid crystal display panel having anorganic insulating film, and the fabricating method thereof, accordingto the present invention, the wiring crossing the sealant has asubstantially similar structure, thereby enabling maintenance of auniform cell gap. Further, according to the present invention, theorganic insulating film is removed from the bordering part where theliquid crystal is in contact with the sealant such that the gateinsulating film is exposed to the sealant and protects the wirings.Accordingly, the liquid crystal and the sealant are not in contact withthe organic insulating film at the bordering part, thus the liquidcrystal contamination caused by the reaction of the sealant and theorganic insulating film might be prevented. The organic insulating filmprotects the wiring in the cell outer part and it partially overlaps thesealant. Thus, the adhesive strength can be improved due to thereduction of the area of contact between the sealant and the organicinsulating film.

Further, according to the present invention, in case that thesurroundings of the TCP adhered to the pad part is sealed by thesealant, the pad upper electrode, which is formed of a transparentconductive layer, is located between the edge part of the TCP and theedge part of the sealant, thereby enabling the improvement of theadhesive strength and the protection of the pad upper electrode.

Although the present invention has been explained by the embodimentsshown in the drawings described above, it should be understood to theordinary skilled person in the art that the invention is not limited tothe embodiments, but rather that various changes or modificationsthereof are possible without departing from the spirit of the invention.Accordingly, the scope of the invention shall be determined only by theappended claims and their equivalents.

1. A method of fabricating a liquid crystal display device, comprising:providing first and second substrates having a liquid crystal region, asealant region, and an outer region; forming a wiring on the firstsubstrate, wherein the wiring crosses the sealant region; forming aninorganic insulating film on the wiring; forming an organic insulatingfilm on the inorganic insulating film, wherein a portion of theinorganic insulating film is exposed in the sealant region; and forminga liquid crystal layer between the first and second substrates using asealant, wherein forming the wiring includes: forming a gate line and afirst common line in the liquid crystal region, a gate pad lowerelectrode and a common pad lower electrode in the outer region, a commonlink connected to the common pad lower electrode and crossing thesealant region, and a gate link connecting the gate line to the gate padlower electrode across the sealant region; forming a second common lineon the inorganic insulating film, the second common line crossing thegate line; exposing a portion of the common pad lower electrode, aportion of the first common line, a portion of the second common line,and a portion of the common link when patterning the organic insulatingfilm; exposing the gate pad lower electrode and the first common linewhen patterning the inorganic insulating film; and forming a gate padupper electrode connected to the exposed gate pad lower electrode, acommon pad upper electrode connected to the portion of the common padlower electrode, a first contact electrode connected to the portion ofthe first common electrode and the portion of the second common lines,and a second contact electrode connected to the portion of the secondcommon line and the portion of the common link.
 2. The method of claim1, wherein forming the inorganic insulating film includes patterning theinorganic insulating film.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein a portionof the first substrate is exposed between the wiring in the sealantregion.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein forming the organic insulatingfilm includes forming an organic insulating film that overlaps a portionof the sealant region.
 5. The method of claim 4, further comprisingforming a dummy pattern between the inorganic insulating film and theorganic insulating film.
 6. The method of claim 5, wherein the dummypattern overlaps the sealant region and includes metal.
 7. The method ofclaim 5, wherein forming a dummy pattern includes forming asemiconductor layer underneath the dummy pattern.
 8. The method of claim1, further comprising forming a dummy protective pattern on the organicinsulating film in a region where the organic insulating film overlapsthe sealant region.
 9. The method of claim 8, wherein forming a dummyprotective pattern includes forming a transparent conductive layer. 10.The method of claim 1, further comprising forming a second inorganicinsulating film between the inorganic insulating film and the organicinsulating film.
 11. The method of claim 10, wherein the secondinsulating film has a substantially similar shape to the organicinsulating film.
 12. The method of claim 1, further comprising:attaching a tape carrier package with a pad area having at least one ofa gate pad and a data pad through an anisotropic conductive film; andsealing the tape carrier package and the pad area using a secondsealant.
 13. The method of claim 12, wherein the second sealantsurrounds a periphery of the tape carrier package.